Generally, glass substrates for liquid crystal displays (LCDs), plasma display panels (PDPs), etc., are subjected to a wet (cleaning) process in which a cleaning liquid, such as pure water, is supplied to treat the glass substrates. After the cleaning process, the substrates undergo additional processes to remove the cleaning liquid remaining adherent to the surfaces of the substrates. Such additional processes include cleaning liquid treatment and drying.
The process for cleaning liquid treatment is illustrated in FIG. 1. Referring to FIG. 1, after substrates 1 are fed into a closed chamber body 10 through an inlet opening 11, high-pressure air or a high-pressure inert gas from an air knife 14 is sprayed onto the moving substrates 1 to remove impurities, such as water (or a cleaning liquid). The substrates 1 from which the impurities have been removed are discharged to the outside through an outlet opening 12.
The impurities, such as water (or a cleaning liquid), adherent to the substrates 1 are blown away by the high-pressure air or high-pressure inert gas. The blown water (or cleaning liquid) particles are discharged to the outside through the outlet opening 13. A large amount of the air or inert gas released from the air knife 14 creates complex streams inside the chamber body 10. Such air streams cause a part of the water (or cleaning liquid) particles to attach to a partition wall 16.
The water (or cleaning liquid) attached to the partition wall 16 flows down along the partition wall 16 and falls onto the substrates 1. A portion of the water (or cleaning liquid) flowing down along the partition wall 16 falls at the rear of the air or inert gas sprayed from the air knife 14. As a result, the substrates 1 from which water (or cleaning liquid) remains unremoved are discharged to the outside.
Like so, when water (or cleaning liquid) remaining adherent to the substrates 1 discharges to the outside, the number of defects in final products increases.